6 - Policy Matters in Science and Development

Summary

Since independence, Africa has undertaken the responsibility of formulating science policies for its countries. The chapter reviews science policies in African countries to see how these are part of individual national development policies, programmes and strategies. Science policy has an overarching purpose of growth, rational management of resources, implementation of strategies, monitoring and evaluation. In Africa, policy development in science, technology and innovation is still an underdeveloped or developing area. The integration of policy and development was lacking in several African countries. Without a policy in place, science cannot be expected to grow or contribute to national development. This has however been addressed in recent years as countries now realise its importance. A welcome indicator in Africa is that countries and their political leaderships have acknowledged the urgency of a science policy for overall development, and any failure and delay can have corresponding effects on national development. At the same time, the policies, strategies and plans followed in Africa are not infallible and more attention is required. The challenge for Africa is to ensure that policymaking is an ongoing process that takes into account the changes that occur in science, technology and innovation in Africa and the rest of the world.